Door-equalizer.



E. A." BENJAMIN.

DOOR BQUALIZBR. APPLIATION FILED MAY 23, 1908..I

905,137. Patented De.1,19o8.

Z4 E y /ZZ l I M atboznua i j l l l Y jf -o I fR f2 f A v i 2g PATENT oEEIoE.

' EDWIN A. BENJAMIN, or SAN DIEGO-OALIEORNIE noon-EQUALIZEE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 1, 1908.

. Appiicauon mea may as, 190s. serial No. 434,580.

To all whom it may concern.:

VBe it known that I, EDWIN A. BENJAMIN, a citizen of the United States, residing at San Diego, in the county of San Diego and State of California, A.have invented a new and useful Door-Equalizer, of which the followingis a specication.

This invention relates to parallel motion devices, and more especially to a device of the character described for door equalizers.

The invention consists broadly in a casing of the type used in sectional bookcases, a drop front door, and certain cord arrangements within the casing togetherwith means for connecting the door to said cord arrangement so that the two ends of the doorwill move synchronously and in the same direction.

The invention further consists in certain novel details of arrangement and'combinations of parts hereinafter described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and specifically set forth in the claims. y

In the accompanying drawings, like characters of reference indicatel likelparts in the several views, and Figure 1 is a plan view of a sectional bookcase with the device applied and the door removed. Fig. 2 is a transverse section of such a case showing the upper part of the door and the'device. 1 Fig. 3 isA a diagrammatic'view of the `cord arrangement in perspective. Fig. 4 isa detail cross section of one of the balls used' in this connection. Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view of one form of hook'for use with the door. Fig. 6 is a similar view of a different form of hook. Fig. 7 is a view ofthe blank from whichA Fig. 6 is made, the same being in plan.

The numeral 10 indicates one section of a sectional bookcase and is provided with ends 11 and a back 12. Mounted adjacent the topV rear corners of the case are brackets 14 and 15. On the bracket 14 is supported an upper roller 16 and a lower roller 17, and on the bracket 15, is supported in like manner, an upper roller 18 and a lower roller 19. Each of the brackets is provided with a forwardly and downwardly extending linger 20. At the upper front corners of the casing there are rollers 21 and 22 supported in any suitable manner, the roller 21 being in front of lthe bracket 14 and the roller 22 in front of the bracket 15. An endless cable 22', preferably in the form of a cord of organic or metallic fiber, is strung tightly around these rollers in the followingmanner: Starting yfrom a point adjacent but in front of the roller `16 the cord runs around that roller making substantially a quarter turn, then the cord inclines downward and passes around the roller 19, then to and around the roller 22, then back and around the roller 18, then downwardly to the roller 17 and around that roller, then to and around the roller 21 to the starting point. Carried upon those portions of the cord which lie between the rollers 16 and 21, and 18 and 22 is a pair of balls 23. Each of these balls is provided with'an axial opening 24 and a radial opening A25, the latter being somewhat larger than the former. In connection with the casing 10 there is provided a door 26 of the usual form. Upon each upper corner of the door is mounted a hollow hook, one form of which is indicated at 27 and another form at 28. This hook is arranged to engage the rollers f 21`and 22 when the door is closed and at the same time the balls 23 will lie in the hollow portions of the hooks.

In order tohold the balls 23 securely on the cord 22 the ends of the cord portions are brought through the opening 24 and down through the opening 25. A knot is there made and the cord pulled taut which will cause the knot to pass up through the opening 25, this being permitted by reason of the relatively large size of that opening. The relatively small size of the opening 24 will prevent this knot from being drawn through the said opening and the balls will thus be securelypositioned on the cord. In the form of hook shown in Figs. 2 and 5 the same is made ofwire and is provided with a screw threaded end 29 arranged to be screwed into the door in a manner similar to the ordinary clothes hook. The opposite yend of the wire is brought around the shank `of the screw threaded portion, as indicated at 30, and from there the two ends are eX- tended outward in spaced relation, then downward, maintaining the same relation until the end, when they are flared outward, then back upon themselves in lines parallel to the previous portions, and again bent downward to form an eye as at 31. There is thus formed a species of hook having four arms, the arms being joined in pairs by loops, as indicated at 32. These arms are so spaced that the diagonal distance between the front arm of one pair and rear arm of the other will be substantially equal to the diameter of the ball 23, while the direct distance between the pairs of arms and the front and back arm of each pair will be less than that diameter. The ball will thus be held securely in position when in the hook, and will be prevented from release sidewise or from the front or rear. In the form of hook indicated in Figs. 6 and 7 and by the numeral 28, the body of the hook is indicated by that numeral. This hook is made from sheet metal as shown in Fig. 7, the arms being concaved and upwardly bent to form a slotted tube 33, best seen in Fig. 6.

When the door is in its closed position, seen inF ig. 2, it will be noted that the hooks embrace the rollers 2l and 22 and form a means for suspending and pivoting said door. At this time the balls lie with reference to the hooks in the position indicated by full line. When it is desired to open the door same is raised in the usual manner. The door is then pushed back, and no matter whether the thrust be on one end or the other, both balls will move synchronously and at the same time, and in the same direction. Both ends of the door will thus be carried back evenly and without jamming. The lingers 20 will, when the door is fully opened, act to lift the rear end thereof and prevent jamming on the brackets 14 and l5.

In order to provide for taking up the slack of the cord the brackets lt and l5 have screw slots 33 therein, so that said brackets may be adjusted to keep the cord tight.

It is to be noted that this device is simple in form and easy of application to any eXisting bookcase or the like of the class described.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new, is r- Y l. In a device of the character described, a casing, a door, an endless cord arranged within the casing, a pair of balls rigidly secured to the cord and arranged to move synchronously in the same direction as the door is moved, and means on said door for engaging the balls.

2. In a device of the character described, a casing, a door, an endless cord arranged within the casing, a pair of balls rigidly secured to the cord and arranged to move synchronously in the same direction as the door is moved, and means on said door detachably engaging said balls.

3. In a device of the character described, a casing, a plurality of rollers in the front and back thereof, a door, a pair of balls, an endless cord carrying said balls, and running over the rollers, said balls being rigidly secured to the cord and arranged to move synchronously in the same direction as the door is moved, and means on said door engaging the balls and' adapted to engage certain of said rollers when the door is closed.

el. In a device of the character described, a casing, a plurality of rollers in the front and back thereof, a door, a pair of balls, an endless cord carrying said balls and ruiming over said rollers, said balls being rigidly secured to the cord and arranged to move synchronously in the same direction as the door is moved, and hooks on said door and engaging said balls and adapted to engage certain of said rollers when the door is closed.

5. In a device of the character described, a casing, a plurality of rollers in the front and back thereof, a door, a pair of balls, an endless cord carrying said balls and ruiming over said rollers, said balls being rigidly secured to the cord and arranged to move syn* chronously in the same direction as the door is moved, and hollow hooks on said door holding the balls in the hollows thereof and adapted to engage certain of said rollers when the door is closed.

6. In a device of the character described, a casing, a pair of rollers in each of the upper rear corners thereof and arranged in horizontal planes, a roller near each of the upper front corners of said casing and arranged in vertical planes, an endless cord passing over said rollers in substantially parallel relation between the front and rear rollers and in cross relation between the two pairs of rear rollers, balls mounted on said cords to move synchronously and in the same direction as the door is moved, and means carried by the door for engaging the balls.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto atlixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

EDIVIN A. BENJAMIN.

lVitnesses MARTHA A. BENJAMIN, THOMAS OHALLARAN. 

